Palace slams Trillanes for baseless claims vs. Paolo Duterte, Mans Carpio

Without naming Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, Malacañang on Friday blasted the lawmaker for presenting baseless claims against presidential son Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and son-in-law lawyer Manases Carpio at the Senate hearing on the P6.4-billion shabu smuggling mess.

Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella at a briefing in Malacañang said there was no need to name the particular senator.

“While nearly all senators showed respect for truth and reason, we caution against a particular one who made baseless claims of purported bank accounts and body markings and then prodded witnesses to disprove his claims instead of presenting validating proofs,” he said.

“These tactics have been foisted on public and media time and again and the only way to stop this is to demand proof from anyone making baseless claims,” he added.

Abella was obviously alluding to Trillanes, who earlier claimed that Vice Mayor Duterte was part of a transnational organized crime group or "triad," and a dragon tattoo on his back would prove it.

Duterte refused to show his back, even to the Senate sergeant-at-arms, as Trillanes had proposed.

Trillanes also asked both Duterte and Carpio to confirm certain bank accounts which the lawmaker claimed belonged to the two.

After the hearing, the senator claimed that the vice mayor amassed hidden wealth through his smuggling operations and illegal drug trade.

Nonetheless, Abella thanked the Senate blue ribbon committee for giving Vice Mayor Duterte and Carpio a chance to debunk what he called baseless claims against them. — MDM, GMA News